Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Stock Position in Materion Co. (NYSE:MTRN)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of Materion Co. (NYSE:MTRN) by 8.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,246 shares of the basic materials company’s stock after selling 8,899 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.47% of Materion worth $10,990,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ceredex Value Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Materion during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $12,938,000. F M Investments LLC bought a new stake in Materion during the second quarter worth $11,643,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its position in Materion by 31.3% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 444,003 shares of the basic materials company’s stock worth $48,010,000 after purchasing an additional 105,969 shares during the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its stake in Materion by 21.8% in the 2nd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 538,975 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $58,280,000 after purchasing an additional 96,525 shares during the period. Finally, abrdn plc grew its stake in Materion by 19.8% in the 3rd quarter. abrdn plc now owns 258,728 shares of the basic materials company’s stock valued at $28,941,000 after purchasing an additional 42,717 shares during the period. 93.56% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of Materion from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 8th.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Gregory R. Chemnitz sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $117.57, for a total value of $235,140.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 12,031 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,414,484.67. This trade represents a 14.25 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.30% of the company’s stock.

Materion Stock Down 2.1 %

Materion stock opened at $114.44 on Monday. Materion Co. has a twelve month low of $96.18 and a twelve month high of $145.08. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $107.73 and a 200-day moving average price of $110.34. The company has a market capitalization of $2.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.24 and a beta of 1.19. The company has a quick ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 3.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Materion (NYSE:MTRN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The basic materials company reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41. Materion had a net margin of 4.45% and a return on equity of 12.06%. The firm had revenue of $436.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $416.40 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.39 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Materion Co. will post 5.24 EPS for the current year.

Materion Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 6th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a dividend of $0.135 per share. This represents a $0.54 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.47%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. Materion’s dividend payout ratio is currently 15.21%.

Materion Profile

Materion Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, produces advanced engineered materials used in semiconductor, industrial, aerospace and defense, automotive, energy, consumer electronics, and telecom and data center in the United States, Asia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Performance Materials, Electronic Materials, Precision Optics, and Other.